Human Trafficking Prosecution sharply drops in Ethiopia amid Rising Transnational Scam Concerns: US Report

Ethiopia experienced a notable drop in human trafficking investigations, prosecutions, and convictions in 2025, even as authorities expanded victim identification efforts and introduced new regulatory frameworks for overseas employment, according to the US Department of State’s 2026 Trafficking in Persons Report released on October 8, 2026. The annual report indicated that the Ethiopian government recorded 363 trafficking investigations in 2025, down from 470 the previous year. Authorities prosecuted 417 individuals under the nation’s anti-trafficking laws—a significant decrease from 697 in 2024—while court convictions for traffickers fell from 340 to 191.

Despite the decline in judicial actions, Ethiopia maintained its Tier 2 ranking, reflecting a government that does not fully meet minimum standards for eliminating trafficking but continues to make significant efforts to bring itself into compliance. The report credited these efforts to a new overseas employment law, the deployment of labor attachés to select diplomatic missions, and increased financial allocation for victim support and repatriation. The report pointed to ongoing structural and law enforcement challenges, including a persistent failure by local and regional authorities to properly distinguish human trafficking from migrant smuggling.

It also noted that a lack of adequate support services for victims participating as witnesses in criminal trials continues to hamper investigations and prosecutions. Grave concerns were additionally raised regarding armed conflict and child recruitment, with credible sources stating that government security forces, as well as armed including Fano forces, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLF-Shane) unlawfully recruited and used child soldiers in combat and support capacities. While the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) investigated some cases involving government-affiliated forces, the report noted that the government did not report any formal criminal investigations or prosecutions stemming from those findings.

On the victim identification front, authorities identified 164 direct trafficking victims in 2025, compared with 105 during the prior reporting period. This group included 37 children subjected to forced labor and 127 adults exploited under various unspecified forms of trafficking.